The Commission: Revived

[Armalite_]

Please read the OOC character thread before posting! Thanks
http://www.thefurryforum.com/forums/index.php?topic=32734.0


Smoke billowed from the coyote's nose as he stood out front Dominc's Bakery on the lower East side. He smiled and nodded to a lone vixen as she walked past giving him a shy grin as he tilted his hat to her. He loved this city, and soon it would be his for the taking. The sun had just finished setting and nightfall was closing in quickly. He finished his cigarette and flicked it to the street when the bell above the bakery's door made the familiar clang as it swung open before two wolves dressed neatly in pinstriped suits walked out.

"Did he understand?" Spike asked one of them as they walked back to the car parked out front on the street. The two wolves looked at eachother and then nodded in reponse. "Good." He replied as one of the wolves opened the door for Spike to climb in. Once inside the car he pulled out a small leather note book from his breast pocket. He penned a line across a name and number and put the book back in his jacket.

The driver started the car and slowly pulled away from the curb. The street was quiet as they drove past the vixen that had walked past Spike earlier. Spike watched her as she walked alone down the sidewalk. "Pull over." He said flatly. The wolf immediately pulled to the side of the road. They coyote rolled down the window nearest the sidewalk. The vixen froze, unsure what was about to happen when the car pulled up beside her. "It's a bit dangerous walking these streets all by yourself, ain't it?" Spike said from the back seat with a grin.

"Is it?" She asked back with a slight nervous chuckle. "I live close by but I've never had any trouble walking home at night." She went on. The coyote sensed the uneasiness of her voice but didn't reply back right away. The smile slowly disappeared from the vixen's face as she watched the coyote open the car door and step out.

"Listen, you know who I am." He said as he approached her. "This is a bad part of town. Let me take you home." He said, stopping a few feet away.

The vixen looked at him "Yes...but..." Before she could finish, one of the wolves got out of the car and opened the rear car door Spike had just closed and stood aside.

She knew he wasn't giving her an option. "Please, I don't want any trouble." She said, beginning to step back. The coyote tilted his head and narrowed his eyes.

"Then get in the car." He said with a serious tone.

She hesitated but eventually complied. Slowly and silently walking past the coyote and getting in the car. Spike looked down the empty street and climbed in after her. The car door closed before it pulled away from the curb, disappearing into the night.

[Dirgeful]

Round, wooden tables shone with a brilliant glint in the warm, artificial light of the cafe. A male cat situated at on of these rounded tables sat staring out the window, seemingly mindless as to what was happening around him. His tawny brown fur appeared almost golden in the light of the bright lights and his eyes looked much paler than they truly were. The male's expression quickly changed to one of annoyance, his ear flicking backwards in displeasure. He sighed and turned his gaze away from the window as he sat there. Eventually, he confirmed with himself that the man he was supposed to meet was a no show and stood up from his seat. Laying down the bill for his coffee with a small tip, he made his way to the door.


"Oh, are you leaving, Vant?" the young cafe owner, an owl Vant had long been acquainted with, asked, curiously.


"Yeah, I supposed to, uh, meet a co-worker here for a bite to eat, but they didn't show up. Probably held up by something, y'know how it is. Sometimes works to much." Vant replied smoothly, "Don't worry, I'll stop by again soon, Ceril. This place has the best strawberry gelato I know of."


"Haha, that's what I like to hear from our best customer." he said, waving goodbye as Vant exited the cafe.


The dusk sky was covered with clouds in this area of the city. A slight chill had settled over the area as Vant walked back towards Marino family headquarters, disappointed to have to come back baring bad news. The guy he was supposed to meet, hadn't showed up, which meant one of two things, he was dead or he decided to turn against. For his sake, he had better hope it's the first. The streets were still fairly populated, bright lights filled the streets as Vant took his long strides. People moved out of his way at his clearly purposed gait, glancing at him curiously before looking away, forgetting they had even seen him by that point.

[Armalite_]

The bright flash of the camera illuminated the gristly scene as the detectives watched. The coroners rolled the first body into a white bag and carried out of Dominic's Bakery into an ambulance parked in the street. The blood was still dripping from the counter by the time they had arrived. The "open" sign had been flipped to "closed." A passerby noticed a lot of blood as it pooled around the end of the counter as the lights were still on despite the bakery being "closed" in the middle of the evening. The double homicide was undoubtedly an act of punishment by the mob. The families seemed to be getting more violent when met with resistance by private businesses that refused to pay their fee or couldn't keep up with their quota.

The german sheppard knelt down as he studied the pool of blood that encirlced where the 2 bodies had fallen. "Smells like wolves all over this..." He said, standing back to his feet.

Dominic and his wife were tortured and bludgeoned to death. Their paws and faces appeared to suffer burns from the ovens near the back before being killed. Walking to the back of the shop, the detective took note of the flesh and burnt strands of fur that fused to the steel. Narrowing his eyes, the detective instructed the photographer to also document the burnt bodies and the scene in the kitchen.

"Start knocking on doors. Someone's got to have seen something." He said to the deputies near the door.

[Dirgeful]

Vant stepped into the large parking lot, walking confidently towards the door of the law enforcement office. He walked into the building and looked around the room discreetly, taking note of the people there. Walking into on of the many staff only rooms, Vant immediately caught the eye contact of his higher-up, a small lynx. After the quick exchange of sight, Vant continued on to his desk as per usual. A few minutes after, his higher up got up and walked out of the room. Waiting another few minutes, Vant followed him, meeting him outside the establishment with a grim expression.


The lynx was waiting out there by some bushes on the side walk, a cigarette held firmly in between his fingers and lighting up his light colored fur. Hearing Vant's footfalls, he glanced over and waited for him to come over. Vant approached and leaned up against the wall, seemingly looking at the stars.


After a moment, the lynx spoke, he voice gruff with an underlying hint of hostility, "Well? Are you just going to stand there or are you going to make your report?"


Vant sighed, glancing around once more cautiously, "He was a no show, sir. I even waited an extra hour to be sure. He just didn't show."


The lynx growled at the statement, "Well, it's gonna be fun telling the boss about this one, I wonder who he'll send after him..."


Vant nodded, "Yeah... Probably some canid, though, they're really good at sniffing out their targets."


A few moment later the lynx headed back inside the establishment, Vant soon following after him. The bright lights assaulting him as he entered. He planned on going to the break room, maybe watch some news. He was certain there'd be something interesting he could learn from in the intel it would provide.

[Armalite_]

The German Sheppard walked back to his desk back in the precinct, hanging his coat up on the hook before taking his seat. "Detective Howler?" One of the admins, a sheep, asked through the doorway as he just began to sift through his mail left on the desk.

"I've barely sat down, what is it now?" He asked in a gruff and frustrated tone.

"Sorry...The chief asked me to tell you that the Lombardi files you requested on the inferno last week could not be found." The sheep said, flattening her ears. She almost flinched as she awaited his reaction but was only met with silence.

"...Of course not." He said, unsurprised at the news. "Funny how all our files just grow legs of their own and run out of the building when we need them." He held his head in his paws. Looking back up, he watched as the small lynx walked by his office shooting a glance at the dectective before disappearing out of view. Howler followed him with his eyes until he turned the corner.

"Detective?" The sheep asked, trying to get his attention. The detective was stuck in a trance, a empty hopelessness was beginning to weigh in on his expression. He closed his eyes and tried to keep his temper.

"...Tell the chief those files are the last piece of evidence we had that put those Lombardi boys at the scene. We have to keep looking." He said firmly.

The sheep nodded and quickly hurried away.

Detective Howler sat quietly at his desk taking a moment to calm himself. He opened his eyes between his paws and looked at the new reports spread out in front of him. Sighing, he opened up the drawer on his right beside his leg. The small drawer contained a notepad, a Colt .38 Detective, cigarettes, several empty shell casings, and a small bottle of whiskey. Reaching for the bottle and unscrewing the cap, he took a long sip as he stared at the picture of his kids on his desk off to the side. "If not for yourself...then for them." He said, finishing the remainder of the liquor at the bottom and tossing the empty bottle into the waste basket.

(~~~~~Meanwhile across town~~~~~~)

"I told you I won't say anything!" The young woman pleaded. Blood was beginning to drip down her arms from the cuffs on her wrists that kept her bound in a standing position as she hung completely naked from the rafters. The group of candids before her stared sternly as she begged.

"...I really like you...but you're hard to like when you lie like that." The coyote said as he circled her. "I like to think that on any other day we could have been friends but you caught my friends and I at a bad time." He said in a regrettable tone. He could smell the scent of her perfume as he got close to her neck. "Do you have anything that might help your situation?" He whispered in her ear. She flinched.

Tears ran down the vixen's face as she silently awaited her execution. Her eyes kept shut as she was too afraid of what she might see. She didn't think she would die like this; bleeding, cold, violated, and afraid in the basement of a dingey warehouse. "Please, stop playing with me and kill me if that's what you're planning on doing." She exclaimed, hoping to end the misery and pain.

Spike's eyebrows raised and he took a step back in surprise. "Kill you!? Good heavens, no." He said with a laugh. "What do you think we are? A bunch of savage dogs with no remorse or morals?...." He paused and looked at the wolves. One of them shook their head. "Actually forget I said that." He laughed. His eyes glowed with a psychotic rage as he placed a gag in her mouth and held her maw as one of the wolves began to wrap tape over it. She moaned and struggled as they wrapped more layers and began to wrap it over her eyes and eventually her entire head except her nose. The vixen began to breathe heavily as she began to panic. She was sure this was how she would die. She wimpered and moaned as she awaited her fate.

Spike pulled out a small pocket knife and held it to her neck as he embraced her from behind. Her nose twitched at the cold touch of the blade against her skin. She was quiet, already having accepted death. The coyote paused and sniffed her scent once more. The vixen cringed as she felt his nose sweep across her neck. He dropped his arms from the embrace and stood back, looking at the wolves he gestured at them to leave the room. Without hesitation, they walked out leaving Spike alone with the Vixen.

"You know...I wasn't lying when I said I liked you..." The coyote said, taking off his jacket and hat before draping it over a crate with his hat resting on top. "...and I don't think I'm done playing with you either."

The wolves closed the door behind themselves and stood quietly outside. They listened as the Vixens muffled screams and moans penetrated the breif silence. One of them lit a cigarette as he stood against the bitter cold, the other stared off. "Think he'll give us a turn?" The one staring asked. The other wolf looked at him while exhaling smoke and then looked away. He ignored the question.